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Gore Sets Goal On Fossil Fuels

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The New York Times

Published: July 18, 2008

WASHINGTON - Former Vice President Al Gore said on Thursday that Americans must abandon fossil fuels within a decade and rely on the sun, the wind and other environmentally friendly sources of power, or risk losing their national security as well as their creature comforts.

"The survival of the United States of America as we know it is at risk," Gore said in a speech to an energy conference here. "The future of human civilization is at stake."

Gore called for the kind of concerted national effort that enabled Americans to walk on the moon 39 years ago this month, just eight years after President Kennedy famously embraced that goal. He said the goal of producing all of the nation's electricity from "renewable energy and truly clean, carbon-free sources" within 10 years is not some farfetched vision, although he said it would require fundamental changes in political thinking and personal expectations.

"This goal is achievable, affordable and transformative," Gore said. "It represents a challenge to all Americans, in every walk of life - to our political leaders, entrepreneurs, innovators, engineers, and to every citizen."

His speech on Thursday argued that the reasons for renouncing fossil fuels go far beyond concern for the climate.

In it, he cited military-intelligence studies warning of "dangerous national security implications" tied to climate change, including the possibility of "hundreds of millions of climate refugees" causing instability around the world, and said the United States is dangerously vulnerable because of its reliance on foreign oil.

Some experts were skeptical.

"At this point I don't think there's anyone in the industry who thinks that goal, as a practical matter, could be met, said Philip Sharp, president of Resources for the Future, a Washington think tank. "This is not yet a plan for action; this is a superstretch goal."

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